transylvania -3

the touristy day (with sarcasm) was spent hiking around some city center visiting two churches and an old storage place for villagers' food and stuff. historical. my favorite.

600 stairs or something great like that... guess what was at the top!!

a church.

i'll spare you the pictures of the boring stuff and just show you some cool things. there was a sundial that showed modern hungary's time, 'cause you know... it used to be part of hungary.

here i am faking a smile in front of the church at the top of the stairs. i had to have one or two pics of myself to prove i've actually been to romania.

for the days we were there we kept seeing pilgrims walking back to wherever they came from. that's right, people walked for days and weeks to get to this mass! they sang along the way and, of course, carried their flags.

there were "pentecost roses" (which i'm told are not actually roses) all over romania that time of year. they were very impressive and come in rich, deep colors.

the trees in the whole country are painted white for the bottom meter. historian judit says that's because when people invaded and were sneaking around town, the hungarians wanted to see them if they were hiding in front of the trees, so they painted them white for contrast. judit's husband said it was to keep bugs away. i don't care enough to find out, just thought it was odd.

we went to the touristy place (like where normal tourists go to see/do dracula stuff) for a few MINUTES. cute, huh?

this is all i saw of the dudd, though we were in his birthplace

*i need to travel with people with like interestes*

transylvania -2

you can't beat the scenery in old hungary (transylvania) as far as hills, foothills, even mountains are all around. big open sky, wildlife, villages, and hungarians. *smile*

the mountain that is the final destination of the pilgrimage.

what most of transylvania looked like to me

we got up at 9 and drove an hour to the mountain where we parked about a mile away and walked toward it (strike one).

no pictures of the hike up because it's just a big muddy, hellish hike up a stupid stupid mountain full of a bajillion catholic hungarians who are way to eager to be hiking up a big muddy mountain at sunrise. i was not at all happy, talkative, nor interested in scenery. imagine it, if you want. (strike two and three!)

here's the only proof i have:

but once we got to the top it was a whole different atmosphere. there was such a huge crowd that it covered the whole mountaintop. some bishop gave a sermon, and some other fancy people talked. everyone was reverent and attentive. see their heads?

soooo many flags! i looked and looked for an american one

but finally settled on this canadian one to represent the other side of the world

and this flag, sneaky little thing, kept tricking me into thinking it was american (it's actually old hungary's flag)

my favorite part of the whole experience was when it rained (go figure). all the magyars whipped out umbrellas and ponchos. there wasn't a wet person on the whole mountain!

hungarians are always prepared

every single one of them

have you ever seen so many umbrellas?!

even the flags had ponchos :)

these are the sweet old people we stayed with. they came with us to the mountain service. those are unhappy faces because we didn't bring any food and we were up there for like 4 hours (strike three).

judit and akos got tired of standing so they leaned against each other and listened.
("hey forest, you lean up against me and i'll lean back up against you. that way we don't have to sleep with our heads in the mud" came to mind)

obviously arnold is very cool

i finally saw an american flag!

after the long mass, a few chats with some friends and strangers, an akos potty break (i'm sure), and some pointless standing around, we started our descent. (the people wearing pointy felt hats would be my companions)

it was terribly muddy. judit bit it and slipped in the mud. akos was 20 paces ahead of us, so i'm sure he didn't know. then arnold bit it and sat down! in the mud. he was a good sport about it.

after the hike down (much easier, btw) we walked through the town that sits at the bottom of the mountain. old hungary to a tee!

in this stone mosaic you can see the shape of old hungary (the complete shape) and new hungary (hungary as it's seen on modern maps). hungary was divided and divvied out to the surrounding countries after WWI, in which it lost like 2/3 of its territory. hungarians still talk about it like it happened last week. *sigh*

trianon.

transylvania -1

a colleague of mine from szent imre (the good school) invited me to come along with her family to transylvania for a pilgrimage (which is held once a year in the same town for all the catholic hungarians ... read about it here if you want). since i didn't go last year, i thought it would be worth it.

we left at about 3am. (strike one)

the four of us traveled by car for a day and a half, 50% of us smoking like chimneys. (strike two)

on the way to where we were going we stopped at some (gorgeous) gorge to hike around (strike three, but bearable). there was no railing or anything to keep us from falling off the ledges, but somehow we managed.

when they wanted to go hiking up to the top (steeper than i care to recall) i bailed and waited for them at the bottom. i amused myself by taking pictures of nature. ooh, ahh.

they came back and the husband (akos) and the 'son' (arnold) had to make a teamwork effort to get down safely.

we traipsed through the mud for another hour after they came down, had a picnic lunch, and hit the road again.

language schools

somehow i'm working in four language schools right now, at least for the summer. it's a lot of work if you consider the hours, but the work is relatively easy as it's mostly directed conversation.


one language school, kódérné iskolája, has been my work place for almost exactly one year. they have treated me well, paid me well and on time, helped me with things outside of work, and the director even took me on a trip once. they are friendly and helpful and speak english quite well. i work with michelin employees there and a few randop adults. love it.


another language school, central language school, is quickly losing its native english teacher. they can't seem to pay me on time and when i have the nerve to ask for my own payment, i'm told not to whine and i'll get it soon. i told them i won't teach another lesson until i'm paid in full. we'll see how that goes. as it is, i don't want to quit just yet because i love my one adult student there and wouldn't like to leave her high and dry. i may just steal her away from them and quit anyway. in that school i also teach two 8 year old girls, which, as i've learned in the past couple months, is beyond my patience and ability. they're sweet girls who put forth a decent effort, but they don't speak enough english to make it worth my while. again, we'll see.


then there is big ben language school. i work for them, but in another town. i take a bus once a week for about 70 minutes and teach two managers of a lens company. they're good guys, the pay is great, and i like to get out of nyíregyháza once in a while. the language school itself is very official and there is more paperwork there than in all the other language schools combined. if i have to cancel a lesson or move one, it's a big deal which needs the director's approval. they pay once a month and i haven't worked there for a month yet, but i suspect it will be done in a timely and honest and well-documented manner.


this week i agreed to work in the fourth language school, ILS. i had a meeting with the director and the education director in which we agreed we were a good fit for each other. they arranged a guided tour of the place (which is three stories) for me this morning. i was impressed by the organization there - certainly not typical of hungary. they gave me keys, had me sign for them, showed me the shedule for all classes, including my own and the ones i might be asked to substitute teach in, then took me on the tour. they showed me the staff room, the books, the library, introduced me to other teachers and demonstrated some stuff on the computer for me. i was SHOCKED when the woman helping me opened a folder in the computer called "christie" which already had important documents in it for me to review. it's like they're a real business who was expecting a new employee. that was more than i would have said for ANY of the three high schools i've worked in. whoa!


then i checked my email and saw that i had received a staff email from ILS. it was addressed to all 30-something teachers and introduced me as the new colleague in the school. it said where i'm from, where i studied, what my degree and certifications are, complimented my american accent, and referenced my hungarian skills. it asked them to help me in fit in and gave my contact information.


o.
m.
g.


that's the best welcome i've ever had in this country and i haven't even started working there yet!!! my first class is on tuesday and i truly can't wait.


things are starting to shape up... végre. :D

moving

i'm moving today! i currently live in a small flat on the school campus (the bad school). but this weekend i found a one bedroom place that accepts dogs, was reasonably priced, is 3 years old, is acceptably furnished, and isn't too far from the city center, so i snatched it up! pictures to come, but gimme a break 'cause i'm moving!! yay!!